Knights of the Old Republic - Squall Leonheart - Child of the Slum
by morbid333
Summary: A brutal regime under a tyrannical queen. Chaotic, festering slums beneath the notice of the ruling circle. A knight returns to witness the ruin left in his absence. An orphan with nothing left to lose sets out to investigate his mother's disappearance. Together, can they piece together the unfathomable? and more importantly, will they survive the journey?
1. Chapter 1

**Knights of the Old Republic: Squall Leonheart**

**Child of the Slum**

**Author's Notes:**

**Disclaimer: **Star Wars and all relative trademarks belong to George Lucas (not anymore…) Final Fantasy VIII belongs to Square Enix, Original characters and any original elements of the plot and/or setting belong to me

**Summery: **A brutal regime under a tyrannical queen. Chaotic, festering slums beneath the notice of the ruling circle. A knight returns to witness the ruin left in his absence. An orphan with nothing left to loose sets out to investigate his mother's disappearance. Together, can they piece together the unfathomable? and more importantly, will they survive the journey?

* * *

**Happy Child**

A gentle breeze blew throughout the arid plain, seeming somewhat out of place as it graced the ravaged, death-like land. Refreshing as it was against the skin, the gentle breeze did nothing to lift the spirits of the teenager dressed in the uniform of the local military school.

The heels of the young man's black steel-capped combat boots clicked softly against the desiccated dirt road as he walked.

He licked his parched lips, not for the first time. The sun beating down from above was getting to him as much as the exhaustion and arid, desert-like atmosphere surrounding the west-road entrance to the village of Winhill.

The young man stretched his arms out behind his head for a moment. The blue sleeves of his open jacket, matching his trousers, rode up as he stretched.

His deep, blue eyes closed tightly as his entire face contorted in a yawn. The fruitless excursion had taken a lot out of him. He was about ready to drop into a long, deep sleep. Luckily, he could see the trashed apartment complex rising up from the ground in the distance. The village entrance was close. He was almost there.

The golden brown dirt beneath his feet seemed to stretch on forever, no matter how close he assured himself he was to his destination.

Slowly, he passed over the drab, dead terrain and made his way through the unguarded gates. Walking between the abandoned, trashed buildings, the young man saw the smashed glass of the broken windows. Nobody had seen fit to fix them.

The village was desolate. It seemed that the brunet was the only person outside in the entire settlement. It wasn't unusual. The days of children playing in the streets were over. It was simply too dangerous, even in the current hours of late afternoon.

It had been like this for over a year. For over a year, the Regional Council of Southern Galbadia had stood broken, disbanded, dead. For over a year, the higher authorities had neglected the south, preferring to spend their resources bolstering the technology of the other regions, of the borders. For over a year, the immortal spirit of Hyne had forsaken them, and his descendants had done nothing. For over a year, Their Queen had abandoned them, and allowed the south to fall into a disreputable, anarchic state. For over a year, their beloved Queen had allowed the once proud south to descend into the depths of chaos and depravity, allowed its many flourishing villages to become lawless slums.

They were pathetic, weak, and without mercy. All the good people had gone, leaving only scum. As they were now, the slums would be better off as pyres.

* * *

At the sound of somebody entering the house, the brunette instantly tensed. Rising to her feet, her arm reached slowly across the countertop, gripping the plastic handle of a small kitchen knife tightly in the palm of her hand. She soundlessly moved toward the door, weapon raised in front of her.

She stood rooted behind the door of the kitchen, waiting. She'd heard something, she was sure. She waited for the intruder to walk into her feeble ambush. She stood ready to strike, all the while hoping she wouldn't have to.

Who was there? Was it a looter? A neighbour? Something worse? Ellone was scared to breathe, in case the potentially violent interloper heard her. She daren't call out to him.

Slowly, laboriously, Ellone heard the footsteps creep closer toward her. He was entering the kitchen.

Ellone braced herself to lash at the intruder.

He entered the kitchen. He wore a white t-shirt beneath a blue jacket with matching pants and black combat boots – the uniform of the local school. The young man was slightly taller than her. Brown hair partially obscured his deep blue eyes. His head was hung. He walked with hands in pockets. He hadn't noticed her.

The young woman barely managed to stop herself in time.

"Squall!" she complained. The teen merely looked at her. "You scared me to death. I almost stabbed you." Squall shifted his focus to the tiny blade held in his sister's hand. He raised an eyebrow. "I thought you were an intruder!"

"That knife isn't much of a threat," Squall uttered.

Ellone released a sigh and put down the knife.

"So, did you find anything? Don't bother denying it. I know you went looking for her again Squall!" she added as a countermeasure to the boy's silent attempt at feigned ignorance. "School ended hours ago. So? Any trace of her?"

Squall looked away, slowly shaking his head.

Ellone's heart practically cracked all the way through at her younger brother's dejected expression.

"Look," she said sympathetically, "It's alright. She's gone without a trace. Nobody expects you to bring her back."

"Just what about this is okay?" Squall snapped. His voice was quiet, but far from calm. It was low, dangerous, and seethed with buried emotion. "She's out there somewhere, maybe dying." Ellone was speechless. There were a thousand things she wanted to say, a thousand things she had to say, should have said, but no words of comfort came forth, and it was beyond too late before any would. "I have to find her." Squall turned away from her. "It has to be me. Nobody _else_ is going to lift a finger to help."

"She's been gone for over a year, Squall."

The boy stared at his sister as though her hair had suddenly fallen out.

Ellone shook her head sadly. "There's nothing you can do. She's just… gone. We have to accept it and move on. People disappear every day. It's just a fact of life. That's-"

"That's the way things are, right?" Squall finished her sentence, utterly glaring at her.

"Don't look at me like that!" Ellone protested. She'd never seen such an expression of pure hatred before. Here was her younger brother, who had idolised her as a child, peering at her with unadulterated malice etched into every fibre of his being.

"You used to be strong," he uttered, "when did you fall into this trap of complacency? When did you give up, give in?" Those eyes that had once been so full of love and hope now looked at her as though she were the lowest form of vermin imaginable. She couldn't take it. To see that look on her brother's face, directed at her of all people, literally tore her apart.

"What can I do?" Squall asked the silence.

"There's nothing you can do. Move on with your life. It's what she would have wanted." Squall shook his head slowly.

"I can't do that."

"Squall, listen to me. She was our mother. She loved us more than anything. She wouldn't want to see you this way. She wouldn't want you to suffer like this." Ellone stood behind her brother and slowly guided him over to the table. "You… _we_ have to move on. Come, sit down. I baked a cake."

Once again, Squall stared at his sister as though a vine had sprouted out of her back. She could have been speaking another language for all the sense she made.

"I don't want any _cake!"_ he vehemently hissed, spitting the word as though it were venom. Pushing his sister aside, he stormed out of the kitchen and hurriedly mounted the stairs, leaving Ellone to stare silently and the place at which he'd stood only moments ago.

"Oh Squall," she lamented, her head shaking once more to express her sorrow. "You used to be such a happy child."

* * *

**A/N: Now I think about it, this story probably would have been better set in the FFVII universe. It probably fits a little better, considering the slum vibe. Unfortunately, I pictured the FFVIII characters instead. Squall in particular, especially later on. I may do a companion story or a crossover at some point, maybe have Midgar as a neighbouring country to Galbadia and Esthar. If I do, it'll probably be a prequel.**

**A/N: I've decided to add character Bio's. This won't be anything new, for those reading Angel of Decadence. It will be similar, though somewhat different. It's main purpose will be to summarise each characters alignment and powers/weapon specialisations. Especially later on, when I get further into Star Wars territory.**

* * *

**Character Bio:**

**Name: Squall Leonheart**

**Eye Colour: Blue-Grey**

**Weapons: None**

**Abilities: None**

**Class: Soldier/Student**

**Alignment: -20 (Neutral-Dark)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Knights of the Old Republic: Squall Leonheart**

**Child of the Slum**

**Author's Notes: **I know it's been a long while since I've uploaded anything, and I'm sorry for being away so long. I started playing Mass Effect and that took up a lot of my time. Then I started working exclusively on some of my original stories. If you're interested, I'll be posting chapters of them on worthyofpublishing. I'll have links, as well as uncensored versions of my fanfics, story summeries, and possibly previews, as well as weekly blog posts/rants about random crap on my new website: . (I wanted to drop the 333 but that domain was taken by some guy in Texas, plus, that's kind of my number, in case you haven't noticed.) So go ahead, take a look, and check back every so often. You never know what I might have up there. I should have a chapter of my fantasy story up on worthyofpublishing in a few weeks. It depends how long it takes to edit. Keep in mind it is very much a work in progress and I'll probably be rewriting the barfight at some point. Also, free pies to anyone who picks out the obscure Regular Show reference that I'm sure nobody will get.

Oh, by the way, I thought I'd point it out. Zell's girlfriend's name is not a reference to any criminally overrated little girl's romance novel. It's a reference to the Griever Chronicles by Larathia. Griever was at one point my favorite fanfic, so if you want to check it out, it's pretty good. Just make sure you find an uncut version, not the one on here.

Anyway, here's the chapter.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Final Fantasy VIII

**Winhill Acadamy**

The brunet sat slumped over the empty desk in front of him. All around him, he could hear the scratching of pens on paper as those around him took notes. Squall's eyes flicked up toward the clock. He had another twenty minutes of this crap. Perfect.

He went back to staring jadedly at the instructor as his ears instinctively tuned out his monotonous, inconsequential drone. He'd taught himself over the past few years as this uninspired man's audience how to ignore pointless distractions, such as these drawn-out lectures.

"Squall!"

The young man looked up at the sound of his own name, tuning back in to the dull, dreary show just in time. He'd had plenty of practice at this, as well. The instructor loved to call on students. Especially those he suspected of not paying attention. He also had a few favourites that he revelled in, picking them for every question, using them in every example. Squall just so happened to be one of those favourites.

"Well, Squall? What's the answer?"

What's the question?

"I'm waiting."

You're also aging, pissing off your students and polluting the air with your pungent stench. Hs anyone ever heard of soap where you come from? But hey, what else is new? "I don't know."

"I forgot. You're blind, deaf and dumb these days, aren't you. Especially dumb. Nothing working up there at all."

This coming from the man implying that being dumb is related to intelligence. The mouth may not move, but the brain runs faster than you ever have in your life. By the way, when is the last time you stepped onto a treadmill?

"How about you hazard a guess? Can you do that? I wouldn't want you to strain yourself." Squall heard some sniggering at his expense. Immature bastards, the lot of them.

"Seventy four?" he proposed, stating the first answer to come to mind.

"This is History!" the instructor retorted, a large vein beginning to throb visibly in his temple. He was easy to rile up, even without the many retorts that Squall bit back.

"I have no idea…" The instructor sneered.

"Bravo, clever dick."

"But I assume it's something we covered months ago," Squall continued. "And since it's you, I can guess that we're discussing a fact that happens to be of no real significance. Useless, pointless, loathesome, detestible, and worthless. I suspect a person. A truly worthless somebody. Someone who would sit by, their mind idle, neglecting their every charge. Other than you, only one name springs to mind. Ultimecia. The instructor's eyes narrowed.

"Insolent brat of a child. Don't you _dare_ talk about the Queen like that in my classroom!"

"The beloved lady is so engrossed in her pointless war that she hasn't bothered to spare a fleeting glance to her subjects in years. You call that a queen? I don't need her. Give me anarchy. The slums are in chaos anyway."

"That's it, detention. Here, after school. You'll have it every day for the rest of this week if you don't answer the question correctly."

"Whatever," the brunette dismissed, eyes glazing over. He had no idea what the question was. He had a week's worth of detention. That would seriously affect the search for his mother. Suddenly, a quiet voice came to him, Whispering the answer.

Squall was hardly sure that he'd heard it. He barely registered that it was a girl's voice, only to dismiss it, retaining the fact, the answer to the question. He passed it along to the Instructor, who's anger seemed to multiply as though Squall had been playing a game all along.

He didn't know who his quiet saviour was, and frankly, he didn't care. He'd been willing to take the detention. He hadn't asked for help. Somebody had been naive enough to offer it unsolicited. Therefore, they deserved no thanks.

X

"Man, that instructor Aki's a real bastard," Zell said, walking over to join Squall at his table in the cafeteria. It was time for the student's scheduled lunch break. A complete waste of time that was neither nourishing nor entertaining. The food was disgusting and the break from study was too long. Squall had better things he could be doing. In fact, this entire school was a joke. What a complete waste of time.

Zell Dincht, the hyperactive blond. The young man who had been Squall's next door neighbour since before either of them could remember, and the only person willing to be in his presence these days, ever since his mother's disappearance.

All his life, Zell was the only person Squall had ever had the luxury of calling a friend, not that he did. Nevertheless, he was willing to put up with the rowdy youth's presence.

"Whatever," the brunet replied, picking carefully at his jelly-coated slab of cold, grey meat with his fork as though he were trying to defuse a mine.

The blonde dropped his tray onto the table with a loud crash, splattering cheese and gravy all over its unclean surface, ignoring the minor glare he received for disrupting the peace and making a mess.

As he ate the disgusting excuse for a meal, Squall's eyes were drawn to the surprisingly quiet blond sitting across from him. When his questioning glance was ignored, Squall resorted to voicing his curiosity. "What is it?" he asked.

"Nothing," replied Zell.

"Your expression states otherwise."

The look on Zell's face was unusual, unfamiliar, different. He seemed to lack his usual tactless confidence. He was being awfully quiet, and he hadn't touched his food. Normally, he'd be stuffing his face right about now, and yapping Squall's ear off with his mouth full, splattering semi-chewed food over the table as he did so.

Squall looked at the blonde. He was jittering. Jiggling and bouncing in his seat.

Okay, that part was normal, but something about him was off. He looked so nervous. But about what.

"You look like you're going to explode if you don't spit it out soon."

"I uh…" Zell began. "I have a problem."

"Wow, how suprising," Squall dryly commented.

"Well, It's not about me exactly. It's… someone else."

Squall was growing irritated at the conversation, but steeled himself. "Can you tell me who it is?"

"You know that girl I hang around with?"

"Pigtail girl?" Squall asked. "Yeah, she usually stares at you with her mouth agape while you stuff yourself with hotdogs."

"Yeah. She's in awe."

"Actually, I think she just wants to know where it all goes." Zell's expression soured.

"Squall, I need you to help. Can you please take this seriously?" Zell was treating this earnestly. Whatever it was, it was bound to be trouble. Squall was tempted to walk away, but curiosity got the better of him, and he motioned for Zell to continue with a nod of his head.

"If I tell you this… I need you to promise."

"Promise what?"

"Squall, can you keep a secret?" The brunet stared blankly at the young man sitting across from him.

"Zell, who do you possibly think I'm going to talk to?"

Zell chuckled, but the laughter died after a second. "Okay… it's about Bella." Squall stared through the blonde, his expression blank, his eyes glazed. "Squall, are you listening?"

"Who are we talking about?"

Zell sighed. "Pigtail girl," he explained, and Squall's eyes suddenly flashed with understanding.

"What about her?"

"She…. Squall, she's pregnant."

The brunet slowly nodded, his face showing no emotion. "Courtesy of you?" he asked.

"Yeah."

"How long?"

"What?" Squall breathed an impatient sigh.

"Well, how far along is she?"

"Oh, I dunno. About a month or so, I guess."

"Well?"

"Well what?"

Zell, Squall thought, you're clueless. "Are you after my congratulations or condolences?"

"Neither. I need your help."

"Shouldn't you talk to your mother about this?"

"I will. Just… not yet. I want Bella there with me. That's why I need you."

"What can I do?"

"Well, last night, I went around to her place to meet the family, you know."

"You told them?"

"Yeah. Well, they know that we'd been... you know."

"How'd they take it?"

"Not well. They were screaming, yelling, insinuating I attacked her, like I'd forced myself on her or something. One minute they were in denial, the next minute I knew, her father pulled a gun out. It was crazy!"

"I don't understand where this is going."

"I don't know if you've noticed, but Bella's not here today."

"You think there's a connection?"

"I'm pretty worried. I think things got worse 'round her place after I left."

"You probably shouldn't have left her there then," Squall replied unhelpfully.

"I know that!" Zell bellowed. "Don't make it worse. That's why I need to go around there again, after school. Before her parents get home."

"When will that be?"

"They get back at five. That gives us over an hour."

"Us? I haven't agreed."

"What? Squall! You have to help!"

"I'm under no such obligation. I have enough trouble without carrying your burden."

"Come on Squall, I need you! _She_ needs you."

"We don't even know what's going on. Maybe she's sick. Maybe she's being kept out of school. Maybe her parents took her to see a doctor today."

"You think?"

"It's the most logical assumption."

"Maybe… or maybe they've got her locked up. Maybe she's in trouble. Maybe she's in danger. Maybe they've hurt her! Maybe…"

"Maybe you have an overactive imagination." Squall tried to keep from smirking at the indignant look Zell had given him. He wasn't sure whether or not he'd succeeded. "One hour?"

"One hour tops," Zell confirmed.

For a long moment, Squall was silent. Finally, he sighed. "Okay, I'll go with you, to check it out, at least."

"Thanks, man."

Bella's house, as it happened, was quite a way off. Squall had no idea the girl had to walk so far each day. Not quite as far as Squall, but that was different. Squall had been scouring the neighbouring slums for any trace of his mother. All Bella had to do was walk to and from School. For such a mundane task, it was such a long way.

The girl practically lived on the edge of town. If her parents owned a car, they could have driven her, or perhaps they'd be too busy. In fact, Squall was getting curious.

"Do they have a car?" he asked the blond beside him.

"What?"

"Her parents. Do they have a car?"

"Yeah," Zell replied. "They're real proud of it, too. One of the last for miles."

"One of the last that still work, anyway. So her parents own a car, and she walks to school every day?"

"Well, it's not Bella's car. Her parents own it. They take it to work with them."

"Classy," Squall dryly commented. The more he heard about these people, the less he liked them.

Squall had seen this part of Winhill Village before, though not in a while, and he'd never have guessed that anybody of interest would have lived here.

He hadn't seen this place in months. Squall had been searching for so long. He'd scoured every inch of Winhill thoroughly for any inkling of a clue. Any semblance of a trail. Anything to go on. Anything at all to tell him where he should look for his mother.

There was nothing. She had simply vanished. Disappeared off the face of the planet.

Since then, Squall had taken to travelling throughout the other nearby slums. They were set out all over the place, on the Bluffs, and even outside of the Winhill region. He'd gone as far south as the land would take him, and as far north as the Dingo Border, though he had yet to cross it.

The Dingo region was a dangerous place. It was said that the desert could swallow a man whole. People had gone mad traversing it, and that was not to mention the many predators out there.

If Squall were to pick up his mother's trail, would he have to enter that region of madness?

Though he hadn't been here in a while, Squall couldn't help but note the familiar layout of the immediate area. It was actually quite nice. Far from the town centre, far from his own home, and far from the old mansion now used as a school, but the large village was friendly to those it housed. Every road was similar. Every footstep one made was just like the last.

Compared to the other slums in the region, Winhill village was a paradise.

"We're here," Zell announced. Squall nodded and slowed his pace, waiting for the blond to lead on.

Zell walked past the various houses until he found the one he wanted, the one he knew.

Number twenty four. It may have been a village, but Winhill was still the capital of it's region, and it's streets were laid out to match. They were just smaller, and there were less of them. Personally, Squall preferred this system to those of the other slums. He'd never seen the large cities for himself, either. There were no cities on this side of the Dingo Desert, but by the sound of them, he'd much prefer to remain where he was, and be a resident of Winhill village in its prime: Before Queen Ultimecia, before the war, before the slums.

The house in question was surprisingly large. Not as big as the old mansion, perhaps, but large enough to dwarf the homes that Squall and Zell had come to know.

It was a monster, towering over the surrounding buildings. "So," Squall asked his friend, "Bella's parents are hoarding some kind of treasure?"

"Oh, yeah. Her family's loaded, didn't I tell you?"

"Too bad they can't share some of their wealth with the rest of us. Are they home?"

"I hope not," Zell replied, stepping up to the door of the large manor."

"Just so we're clear, they're not going to be happy to see us, right?"

"I'd say they'll be downright upset to see us. Well, me, anyway."

"Perfect… may as well check it out."

Zell nodded and reached for the door handle, turning It with a quick jerk of his wrist. "It's locked."

"That's a good sign."

"You think she's in there?"

"You think anyone's in there?"

"They locked the door though, you wouldn't lock the door if someone's in, right… unless they can't get to answer it."

Squall could see the worry in Zell's eyes.

"Let's not get our hopes up," he commented dryly. "Maybe they're not in, or maybe they just want people to think the place is empty."

"Ya think?"

Squall shrugged. "Only one way to find out."

Zell took the large, brass door knocker in his palm and lifted it, bringing it to collide against the walnut double door with a loud bang.

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

"Perhaps nobody's home," Squall suggested. This entire trip was beginning to look like a giant waste of time.

Knock.

Knock— Suddenly, the sound could be heard of a heavy key scraping in a lock. After a moment of tense silence,the double doors cracked open, revealing the long, dark hallway beneath.

Zell looked nervously to the brunette behind him.

Silently, Squall nodded and they both stepped inside, instantly feeling the change in atmosphere. The hallway was suffocating. It strangled the movement of the air, and robbed it of any trace of warmth.

Once the two were over the threshold, the walnut doors closed with a loud crash.


	3. Chapter 3

**Knights of the Old republic: Squall Leonheart  
Child of the Slum**

**Author's Notes: **Sorry it took so long for the update. I've got a new TV and a PS3 since I updated last, and I bought a cheap, used copy of Mass Effect 2, which presents its own problems. Apparently, the Cerberus pack can't be bought from the PS store anymore. What happened to paying $15 dollars if you don't have a promo code? Now I can't get it at all. I have everything else, or will after I download Arrival, just not the Cerberus stuff.

Anyway, I notice people have been visiting my website/blog/whatever it is. I don't know if they're actually reading my posts, but whatever, thanks for at least looking at the homepage, if you did. If not, take a look. It won't take too long. The URL is on my profile page. I'm updated the homepage, actually, with some navigation instructions. Probably unnecessary, but whatever, I thought I'd put them up just in case. I'm proofreading my original chapter now, so I should have it up by this time next week. I'm still not sure if I should post them directly, or just link to worthyofpublishing. Anyway, enough of my inane blabbering. Enjoy the chapter.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Star Wars or Final Fantasy VIII

XX

**Escape**

Squall looked around. He had to admit, the inside of the house was impressive. The fact that three people were hording it all to themselves however, was sickening. This place could have been used for so many different purposes. Instead, some selfish prick was using it to segregate his family from the filthy commoners.

The interior was a similar colour to the door: Dark brown. It wasn't exactly stunning or appealing to the eye, but the brunet supposed it was what some would call classy. Squall however, had little interest in such things. Particularly given the little practicality they offered.

Looking behind him, Squall's eyes fell upon a petite figure: Female, about a head or so shorter than Zell; staring at them with a mixture of anger and confusion on her face. Wearing a matching blue t-shirt and jeans, her brown hair, today free of its usual braided pigtail, matching the colour of her eyes, reached down a little way past her shoulders.

The girl narrowed her eyes, brow furrowing, lips pursing. Her eyes shifted from one intruder to the next. "What…?" she asked, voice cracking. "What the hell are you guys doing here?"

Unsure of how to respond, Squall shrugged his shoulders, an apologetic expression played on his normally reserved features.

"We came to get you out of here," Zell explained.

"Get me out of here? You mean get me out of my home? Did you guys hit your head on the way over or something?"

"Huh?" Zell asked, obviously confounded.

"What he said," Squall replied, shrugging once more.

"You two should leave, now," the girl stated, voice firm, "before anyone sees you."

"What?"

"I knew this was a bad idea," Squall replied.

"Why did you even come?" the brunette asked.

"Zell told me about your situation," Squall replied. The young woman shifted her gaze to the blond.

"You told him?" she asked, "everything?"

"Uh, shouldn't I have?"

"We were supposed to keep it a secret."

"How long do you really think you can keep this secret?" Squall asked, scepticism evident in his voice.

"Well…"

"Do your parents know?" the brunette turned away, giving no answer. "I thought so. How long do you really think you can stall for time? A few months? You're going to start showing the signs eventually. Your family might be hedonistic bastards with no regard for anyone else, but they're not stupid. They'll figure it out sooner or later."

The girl simply stared back at Squall, brown eyes wide.

"Squall, don't go insulting her parents," Zell chastised.

"Tell me," Squall continued, ignoring the blond. He stepped toward the girl. "Have you even thought about what you'll do once they find out?"

"I'll tell them by then!" the girl reproached, voice indignant.

"Will you? When?" Squall asked. His voice seemed calm, but his expression was accusatory.

"I…"

"Why can't you tell them now? Why wait?"

"And how am I supposed to explain this? Huh? You don't know what it's like!"

"If you're going to make excuses, maybe we should leave now."

"Excuses?" the girl raged. "Excuses! You don't have to deal with parents! Yours ran off!"

"Woah," Zell chipped in, looking worriedly from one to the other. This wasn't going well.

"If only yours had the –"Squall cut himself off just in time. Venting his disdain of her family's morals would get them nowhere. He had to drive this in a particular direction. She was almost there, almost. "You know, it's a shame your parents hadn't abandoned you too. Perhaps you'd be a better person."

"Like you, you mean?" the girl sneered. "Don't talk as if you're a prime example of human being. You're snarky, unapproachable, and completely detestable. You don't even have any friends! I don't know _how_ Zell puts up with you, but at least it keeps you away from the rest of us."

Zell's eyes widened. He took a step back, looking at Squall. This had taken a giant leap in the worst possible direction.

"At least I'm not some spoiled, prissy princess."

"You think I'm spoiled? You haven't seen what I have to put up with. You have no idea what their standards are, what they expect of me. When they find out about this… When they find out that their perfect little daughter has gone and… and _soiled_ herself with the child of some common undesirable…" The girl trailed off.

Her voice carried some of the sarcastic bitterness that Squall was more used to spitting than receiving. Especially the way she injected her parents elitist values. Perhaps they had more in common than the young man had thought.

"As far as they knew until last night, I was still an innocent little virgin." The girl made fleeting eye contact with Zell. "Maybe I should be. I shouldn't have let this happen."

"Uh, sorry," Zell apologised, but the girl shook her head.

"It's my fault. My parents don't know that I consort with your kind. If they did, there's no way they would approve, there's no way they would allow it."

"If you didn't consort with our kind," Squall replied in as neutral tone as he could manage, "you'd never leave your home."

"When they find out about this, I'm sure I never will. Hyne, when they find out…" the girl's head shook slowly.

"What, what will they do?"

Her head shook, saying nothing.

"Bella?" Zell encouraged. At the sound of the kind voice, her eyes latched onto his.

"My life won't be worth living."

"With that kind of future, your life isn't worth living now."

"Squall!" Zell chastised. The brunet raised his hand to silence the blond.

"The way you're heading now, there's no reason to keep going."

"So what would you have me do? Step out of a window and hope the fall is enough to end me?"

"Firstly, the fall wouldn't kill you, the impact would."

"Whatever!"

Squall smirked. "Secondly, no. I suggest you change that future."

"How?"

"No matter what, your life as you know it now is over. That's a fact. Deal with it."

"You know, this is the most words I've ever heard you speak."

Squall ignored her. "Whatever you do now, your family won't accept you. It's not possible. I suggest you move on while you still can."

"Just leave? Then what? This house is my home. It's my life. I wouldn't survive five minutes out there."

"In that case, your days are numbered. You can't stay here. These people aren't your family anymore. At least, they won't be for much longer. I suggest you find a new family."

"Yeah, right. How am I supposed to do that?" the girl asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Come with us."

The girl froze, eyes wide. "What?"

Squall shot a glance over to Zell. "You can take it from here, Right?"

"Huh?" the blond replied, face blank.

Squall raised his eyebrows, and Zell finally caught on. "Oh, yeah, right."

Squall nodded. "Then I'm out of here. I'll meet you out back." Without waiting for a reply, he turned and left the two. "Oh," he added as an afterthought, not stopping or turning to look at them. "Don't take all day. Pack your things and be ready to leave quickly. I'd like to be gone before your parents get home.

XX

**Well, there you go. Another short chapter. I do have a long one coming up though. Not long long for my standards, but you know what I mean. I was going to have Bella's parents catch them on the way out, but plans change. I've already gone in another direction. Anyway, hopefully it won't take too long to update the next one.**

**XXX**


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